1. Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
INTERVIEW
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2. Learning Objectives The main types of selection interviews.
The main errors that can undermine an interview’s usefulness.
Define a structured situational interview.
Give several examples of situational questions, behavioral questions, and background questions that provide structure
After we complete this chapter, you will be able to:
List the main types of selection interviews.
List and explain the main errors that can undermine an interview’s usefulness.
Define a structured situational interview.

3. Selection Interview Characteristic
Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
Selection Interview Characteristic
Interview structure
Interview administration
Selection Interview Characteristics
Interview content
Managers use several interviews at work. For example, an appraisal interview is a discussion, following a performance appraisal, in which supervisor and employee discuss the employee’s ratings and possible remedial actions. When an employee leaves a firm, one often conducts an exit interview. This aims at eliciting information that might provide some insight into what’s right or wrong about the firm. Many techniques in this chapter apply to appraisal and exit interviews. However, we’ll postpone a fuller discussion of these two interviews until Chapters 9 and 10 and focus here on selection interviews.
We can classify selection interviews according to:
1. How structured they are
2. Their “content”—the types of questions they contain
3. How the firm administers the interviews (method)
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4. Selection Interview Formats
Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
Selection Interview Formats
Unstructured (nondirective) interview
Structured (directive) interview
Interview Structure Formats
In unstructured (or nondirective) interviews, the manager follows no set format. A few questions might be specified in advance. Most selection interviews fall in this category. Tell me about your seld. What is your greatest strength and weakness, how will our company benefit by having you as a an employees
In structured (or directive) interviews, the employer lists job-oriented questions ahead of time, and possible predetermined answers for appropriateness and scoring.
interviewer ask each
applicant the same series
of job related knowledge
job-applicant is asked
probing, open-ended
question
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5. Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
A manager can use an interview evaluation form such as the one in Figure 7-4 to compile his or her impressions of an applicant.
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6. Interview Content Situational Behavioral
Background/job related knowledge
All three categories of questions are important and should likely be used in all interviews. Using the same questions for all candidates will be helpful as well.
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7. Interview content Situational Behavioral Job related interview
Focus on how candidates would behave in given situation
Behavioral
Focus on how candidates reacted to actual situation in the past
Job related interview
Focus on relevant job-related knowledge
Situational- e.g. how you would react to subordinate coming late to work ? Suppose you were faced with the following situation
Behavioral-Can you think about the time when ……..or relate a scenario during which you were responsible for motivating others –reveal info about attitude, truthfulness, e.g. arrogance, lack of cooperative with team member, anger…What’s the biggest mistake you’ve made? How many people were affected by it? How did you find out about it? How did you recover and what did you learn?
Job related knowledge- related to basic educational skills or managerial skills

8. Situational (What Would You Do) Questions
Suppose your boss insisted that a presentation had to be finished by tonight. Your subordinate said she has to get home early to attend an online class, so she is unable to help you. What would you do?
The CEO just told you that he’s planning on firing your boss, with whom you are very close, and replacing him with you. What would you do?
Situational questions require the candidate to project themselves into a particular situation and explain what they might do. Such questions can provide information about leadership, communication, managing stress, ambition, problem solving and many other important characteristics. It’s a good idea to develop such questions from actual situations that have occurred in your firm.
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9. Behavioral (Past Behavior) Questions
Tell me about a time when you had to deal with a particularly obnoxious person. Describe the situation in detail, and explain how you handled it.
Tell me about a time when you were under a great deal of stress. What was the situation, and how did you handle it?
Asking behavioral questions (the candidate’s past behaviors) is another way to gather the types of information we discussed. Here, the candidate can demonstrate careful preparation for the interview. That is, a good candidate will have thought through questions similar to the ones you ask and prepared answers carefully. Such preparation may also suggest appropriate introspection on the part of the candidate.
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10. Background/job Questions
What kind and how much experience have you had actually repairing automobile engines?
Describe the types and years of experience you have had creating marketing programs for consumer products?
Background questions are usually best use in the early stages of an interview to help establish rapport as well as validate the resume. They also can lead to other follow-on questions later and provide a touchstone for both the candidate and interviewer.
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11. Method of job Interview
In person/ one to one
Panel
Group/ mass
Phone
Web-assisted interview

12. What Error Can Undermine An Interview’s Usefulness?
Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
What Error Can Undermine An Interview’s Usefulness?
Nonverbal behavior and impression management
Applicant’s personal characteristics
Interviewer’s behavior
Factors Affecting An Interview’s Usefulness
First impressions (snap judgments)
Interviewer’s misunderstanding of the job
Candidate-order (contrast) error and pressure to hire
This slide summarizes potential interviewing errors to avoid:
• First impressions (snap judgments)- jump into conclusion in the first few minutes of interview
• Not clarifying what the job involves and requires
• Candidate-order error and pressure to hire
• Nonverbal behavior (level of extraversion, voice mudulation, eye contact, - foe inexperience interviewer) and impression management t(endency to agree with interviewer opinio)n
• The effects of interviewees’ personal characteristics- gender, race, attractiveness
• The interviewer’s inadvertent (unintentional) behavior-
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13. (1) First impressions (snap judgments)- jump into conclusion in the first few minutes of interview
(2) Interviewer’s misunderstanding of the job- Not clarifying what the job involves and requires
Candidate-order error and pressure to hire- the order in which you see applicants affects how you rate them. The effects of primacy (who you interviewed first) or recency (most recently interviewed) can impact your decisions.

14. Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
(4) Nonverbal behavior (level of extraversion, voice, eye contact, - for inexperience interviewer) and impression management (tendency to agree with interviewer opinion
(5) The effects of interviewees’ personal characteristics- gender, race, attractiveness
(6) The interviewer’s inadvertent (unintentional) behavior-
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15. How to Design and Conduct An Effective Interview
Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
How to Design and Conduct An Effective Interview
The Structured Situational Interview
Step 1: Analyze the job.
Step 2: Rate the job’s main duties.
Step 3: Create interview questions.
Step 4: Create benchmark answers.
Step 5: Appoint the interview panel and
conduct interviews.
In creating structured situational interviews, people familiar with the job develop questions based on the job’s actual duties. They then reach consensus on what are and are not acceptable answers. The procedure is as outline in this slide.
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16. How to Conduct a More Effective Interview
Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
How to Conduct a More Effective Interview
Being Systematic and Effective 1 3 2
Know the job. 4
Structure the interview. 5
Get organized. 6
Establish rapport. 7
Ask questions. 8
You may not have the time or inclination to create a full-blown, structured situational interview. However, there is still a lot you can do to make your interviews more systematic and effective.
Take brief, unobtrusive notes.
Close the interview.
Review the interview.
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17. Creating Effective Interview Structures
Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
Creating Effective Interview Structures
Base questions on actual job duties.
Use job knowledge, situational or behavioral questions, and objective criteria to evaluate interviewee’s responses.
Use the same questions with all candidates.
Use descriptive rating scales (excellent, fair, poor) to rate answers.
If possible, use a standardized interview form.
Any structuring is usually better than none. If pressed for time, you can do several things to ask more consistent and job-relevant questions, without developing a full-blown structured interview.
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18. Guidelines for Interviewees
Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
Guidelines for Interviewees
Preparation is essential.
Uncover the interviewer’s real needs.
Relate yourself to the interviewer’s needs.
Think before answering.
Remember that appearance and enthusiasm are important.
Make a good first impression.
Ask questions.
Before you get into a position where you have to interview others, you will probably have to navigate some interviews yourself. It’s therefore useful to apply these guidelines to navigating your own interviews.
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19. Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
FIGURE 7–3 Suggested Supplementary Questions for Interviewing Applicants
How did you choose this line of work?
What did you enjoy most about your last job?
What did you like least about your last job?
What has been your greatest frustration or disappointment on your present job? Why?
What are some of the pluses and minuses of your last job?
What were the circumstances surrounding your leaving your last job?
Did you give notice?
Why should we be hiring you?
What do you expect from this employer?
What are three things you will not do in your next job?
What would your last supervisor say your three weaknesses are?
What are your major strengths?
How can your supervisor best help you obtain your goals?
How did your supervisor rate your job performance?
In what ways would you change your last supervisor?
What are your career goals during the next 1–3 years? 5–10 years?
How will working for this company help you reach those goals?
What did you do the last time you received instructions with which you disagreed?
What are some things about which you and your supervisor disagreed? What did you do?
Which do you prefer, working alone or working with groups?
What motivated you to do better at your last job?
Do you consider your progress in that job representative of your ability? Why?
Do you have any questions about the duties of the job for which you have applied?
Can you perform the essential functions of the job for which you have applied?
Figure 7-3 contains a sampling of technical questions to be asked in interviews.
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

20. Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
FIGURE 7–5 Interview Questions to Ask
What is the first problem that needs the attention of the person you hire?
What other problems need attention now?
What has been done about any of these to date?
How has this job been performed in the past?
Why is it now vacant?
Do you have a written job description for this position?
What are its major responsibilities?
What authority would I have? How would you define its scope?
What are the company’s five-year sales and profit projections?
What needs to be done to reach these projections?
What are the company’s major strengths and weaknesses?
What are its strengths and weaknesses in production?
What are its strengths and weaknesses in its products or its competitive position?
Whom do you identify as your major competitors?
What are their strengths and weaknesses?
How do you view the future for your industry?
Do you have any plans for new products or acquisitions?
Might this company be sold or acquired?
What is the company’s current financial strength?
What can you tell me about the individual to whom I would report?
What can you tell me about other persons in key positions?
What can you tell me about the subordinates I would have?
How would you define your management philosophy?
Are employees afforded an opportunity for continuing education?
What are you looking for in the person who will fill this job?
Sample questions that interviewees may wish to ask during interviews are presented in Figure 7-5.
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21. Human Resources Management 12e Gary Dessler
FIGURE 7–1 Officer Programs Applicant Interview Form
The Department of Homeland Security uses the structured guide in Figure 7-1 to help screen Coast Guard officer candidates. It contains a formal candidate rating procedure; it also enables geographically disbursed interviewers to complete the form over the Web.
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22. Review Copyright © 2013 Pearson Education
Errors that undermine an interview’s usefulness include jumping to conclusions, not having accurate job requirements or the order in which candidates are interviewed. Non-verbal behavior, personal characteristicsand physical attributes also create errors. Interviewers may make numerous mistakes such as playing district attorney or amateur psychologist or asking improper questions
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